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1 Rupie
| Issuer | Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank |
|---|---|
| Year | 1915-1917 |
| Type | Standard circulation banknote |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | Interims-Banknote Die Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank zahlt bei ihren Kassen im D.O.A. Schutzgebiet dem Einlieferer dieser Banknote ohne Legitimationsprüfung Eine Rupie 1 Daressalam/Tabora 1. November 1915. Kraft besonderer Ermächtigung. Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank Zweigniederlassung Daressalam In Vollmacht. |
| Reverse description | The reverse bears a handstamped or overprinted letter Z identifying the Tabora branch series, with two original serial numbers crossed out and two replacement serial numbers inscribed by hand, a practice reflecting the wartime reissue and revalidation procedures of the Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank. |
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| Comments |
The Deutsch-Ostafrikanische Bank's wartime Rupie issues are among the most unusual colonial emergency notes ever produced. By 1915, the naval blockade had completely cut German East Africa off from Europe, making re-supply of printed currency from Germany impossible. The colonial administration under Governor Heinrich Schnee authorized locally produced substitutes — some series printed on whatever paper could be sourced, including in at least one documented case animal skin and salvaged materials.
P#25A belongs to the paper issues, but the supply chain for even basic printing stock was precarious throughout the 1915–1917 window. Notes from this period were circulated under genuine wartime scarcity, not as collector pieces, which makes survivors in any condition genuinely uncommon.